1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to remotely manipulating a magnetic object with at least a portion thereof having a substantially prismatic shape, and more specifically to a device and method for remote placement, installation, and/or removal of a magnetic object such as fastener, bolt, nut, plug, screw, and the like: in limited access locations.
2. Prior Art
The ever increasing design constraints placed on the development of modern machinery has resulted in removable objects typically used for securing of parts or passageway closures to be disposed in limited access areas and require removal/installation from a more desirable remote location. These generally magnetic objects are usually threaded and have at least a portion thereof exhibiting a substantially prismatic shape. As used herein, a “prismatic shape” is a solid whose ends are polygonal and equal in size and shape and whose sides are parallelograms. Typically, the prismatic ends of these objects are hexagonal or square. Tools, such as various wrenches, ratchets comprising various sockets and extension bars, etc., exist for initial installation (starting or insertion of an object onto/into a counterpart and if it is threaded, screwing onto/into a threaded counterpart), final removal (removal of a pre-loosened object from its counterpart and if it is threaded, unscrewing from its threaded counterpart), and/or placement of these objects in usually remote limited access areas. However, these tools are typically either expensive; fit only one size object; not articulated; do not properly engage objects with their counterparts in adverse orientations; and are bulky, therefore, they are not conducive to placement, initial installation, and/or final removal of the objects. In addition, the installation of most threaded fasteners, including bolts and nuts, usually require that a washer, spacer, or the like be installed, however conventional wrenches and tools do not have the capability to adequately hold and maintain alignment of both a fastener and washer for remote installation at unfavorable orientations in limited access locations. With respect to removing oil drain plugs in engines, transmissions, etc., the plug is typically loosened with a conventional wrench and is then further unscrewed and removed by hand. This results in the probability of hot oil getting on hands, arms, and/or floor and the probability that the plug will be dropped in the oil drain container. This drain plug removal process, which is the norm, poses additional safety hazards when draining hot oil from a hot engine because the hot oil can burn the skin and inadvertently dropping the plug in the oil container can splash hot oil into the eyes or face. In addition, the drain plug removal process is further compounded on cars and other vehicles that are low to the ground which results in drain plugs that are not easily accessible. The requirement for drain plug final removal is a device that easily engages with the plug and places the hand and arm at a remote distance from the plug, thus, preventing hot oil from contacting the body and a device that facilitates removal of the plug in areas of limited access.
To facilitate the manipulation of magnetic objects either remotely and/or in areas of limited access, numerous prior art tools have been developed but they all heretofore known suffer from a number of deficiencies and drawbacks. In general, these tools fit into 2 categories, namely (1) those that position, install, and remove fasteners, bolts, nuts, screws and the like and (2) those that position, install, and remove plugs, such as oil drain plugs. Category 1 is further sub-divided into wrenches with fixed jaws, socket wrenches, and other miscellaneous tools.
Examples of prior art wrenches with fixed jaws are U.S. Pat. No. 6,955,105 issued Oct. 18, 2005 to Chuan-Chen Chen and U.S. Pat. No. 6,810,774 issued Nov. 2, 2004 to Chih-Ching Hsien. These wrenches have a permanent magnet integrated in a jaw or adjacent to a jaw for holding the magnetic object within the jaws of the wrench. The disadvantages of this type of wrench are that it cannot fit into areas of limited access; cannot articulate because the handle is rigid; fits only one size of fastener on each end of the wrench; cannot secure and maintain alignment of both a nut and washer or washer to the head of a bolt; is relatively expensive because a set of wrenches are usually required; and is not conducive to initial installation of a magnetic object.
Examples of prior art socket wrenches are U.S. Pat. No. 6,006,630 issued Dec. 28, 1999 to Richard A. Vasichek, Robert J. Vasichek, Gregory J. Grote, and Paul D. Sigaty; U.S. Pat. No. 5,916,340 issued Jun. 29, 1999 to Don Forsyth; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,544,555 issued Aug. 13, 1996 to Ronald E. Corley. These wrenches have a permanent magnet(s) integrated within the cavity of the socket for holding a magnetic fastener. The disadvantages of this type of wrench are that it fits only one size of object per socket; relatively expensive because a set of sockets are usually required; cannot secure and maintain alignment of both a nut and washer or washer to the head of a bolt; articulation is possible with the use of universal joints and extensions but is limited, thereby reducing the usefulness in restricted areas; and is not conducive to initial installation of a magnetic object.
Another example of a prior art socket wrench is U.S. Pat. No. 5,572,913 issued Nov. 12, 1996 to Gustav Nasiell. This wrench comprises a socket body having spring biased jaws and a flexible arm with an internal flexible shaft. The flexible arm can be configured to bias the flexible shaft into the required curve appropriate for performing placement, initial installation, and/or final removal of fasteners, spark plugs, and the like in limited access areas with the jaws being able to grasp varying sizes of heads. The disadvantages of this type wrench or tool are that it has a number of moving parts and therefore, it is relatively expensive; the jaws have a limited head grasping range and therefore, cannot adapt to a wide range of fasteners and the like; as the jaws expand to accommodate larger fastener heads, the jaw faces become non-parallel to the fastener head sides and therefore, have the tendency to not grasp the fastener head securely; the flexible arm cannot be removed from the tool and used only with the flexible shaft; it has deficiencies with respect to oil drain plug removal in that the many moving parts and cavities would entrap oil and be hard to clean and since the flexible arm is relative rigid, the drain plug will not automatically fall out of the oil stream via the force of gravity, resulting in splashing of the oil.
An example of prior art of a miscellaneous tool is U.S. Pat. No. 5,642,647 issued Jul. 1, 1997 to Robert Peruski. This tool comprises a coiled wire loop, a corresponding loop shaped backing plate, and a handle. The wire loop and loop shaped backing plate form a pocket for receiving and holding the head of an object. The disadvantages of this tool are that it cannot secure and maintain alignment of both a nut and washer or washer to the head of a bolt; cannot articulate because the handle is rigid; is relatively bulky and therefore, cannot be used in limited access areas; and is not conducive to initial installation and final removal of a magnetic object.
Examples of tools applicable to category 2, above, are U.S. Pat. No. 4,794,827 issued Jan. 3, 1989 to Denzil Poling, U.S. Pat. No. 4,145,939 issued Mar. 27, 1979 to Ward S. Garrison, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,199,331 issued Apr. 6, 1993 to Kazuichi Tsukamoto. In general, these tools comprise a rotatable socket with adjustable jaws to accommodate and secure various drain plug head sizes and a handle for rotation of the socket and plug. In addition, these tools generally have a permanent magnet attached to the inside of the socket to retain the drain plug. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,794,827 and 4,145,939 further comprises a line for tethering the socket to an anchor to prevent the socket with attached drain plug from falling a distance greater than the line length. U.S. Pat. No. 5,199,331 further comprises a concave shield to catch and deflect draining oil away from the hand of the user. The main disadvantage of these tools is that they do not provide for remote rotation and removal of the drain plug to ensure that hot oil does not contact the user's hand and/or arm. While U.S. Pat. No. 5,199,331 comprises a concave shield to catch the initial oil, it cannot be ensured that oil will not contact the user because (1) if the user does not move the tool out of the oil stream quickly, the concave shield can overflow onto the user and (2) if the tool is removed quickly, oil can splash out of the concave shield and onto the user. In addition, the tethered tools utilize a permanent magnet to attach the tether to a convenient anchor, usually the oil pan, which in many cases is not made from magnetic material. Furthermore, the tools have a single purpose use and cannot be readily used for other applications.
Another example of a tool applicable to category 2, above is U.S. Pat. No. 5,499,557 issued Mar. 19, 1996 to James K. Fry. This tool comprises a removable socket at the head of the tool, a rotatable handle disposed opposite from the head, and mechanical linkage connecting the socket with the handle, whereby, rotation of the handle is translated to rotation of the socket. While the tool provides for remote rotation and removal of the drain plug, it has other disadvantages, namely: (1) the tool is mechanically involved, hence, expensive, (2) it requires a set of special sockets to accommodate varying size drain plugs, further increasing the cost, (3) the tool is hard to clean due to many crevices to entrap oil that runs over the tool, and (4) the tool has a single purpose use and cannot be readily used for other applications.
Additional examples of tools applicable to category 2, above are U.S. Pat. No. 4,862,776 issued Sep. 5, 1989 to Denzil Poling and U.S. Pat. No. 6,260,451 issued Jul. 17, 2001 to Frank D. Mirabito. U.S. Pat. No. 4,862,776 comprises a clip for rotatably engaging and holding a drain plug head, a flexible shaft connected to the clip, and a handle connected to the other end of the shaft for manually rotating the shaft and clip for the purpose of unscrewing an attached drain plug. The clip comprises openable spring biased jaws to secure the drain plug head. While the tool provides for remote rotation and removal of the drain plug, it has other disadvantages, namely: (1) the drain plug has to be unscrewed far enough to permit the jaws to contact the back side face of the drain plug head which could result in leakage of oil, (2) if the shaft is flexed during plug removal, as would be the usual case, the jaws tend to rotate off the drain plug center axis causing undue flexing of the shaft and unstable rotation of the tool, (3) oil will be hard to clean off of the clip because of its involved geometry, and (4) the tool has a single purpose use and cannot be readily used for other applications. U.S. Pat. No. 6,260,451 comprises a tool head, a flexible shaft connected to the tool head, and a handle connected to the other end of the shaft for manually rotating the shaft and tool head for initial installation and final removal of threaded drain plugs. The tool head comprises cavities for engaging with drain plug heads incorporating protrusions. The disadvantage of this tool is that it works only on drain plugs that have heads with protrusions, hence, it has a very limited application base.
While these tools usually provide for manipulating objects with at least a portion thereof having a substantially prismatic shape, such as fasteners, bolts, nuts, plugs, screws, and the like, they all heretofore known suffer from deficiencies and drawbacks. There remains a need in the art for an inexpensive, universal, easy to clean, and simple-to-use device that permits remote placement, initial installation, and/or final removal of these objects (1) in distant areas of limited access, (2) by self adapting to a wide range of object heads, (3) simultaneously with washers, spacers, and the like while maintaining pre-placed alignment with the object, (4) in off axis locations were device articulation is required, (5) with a tool having no moving parts, (6) in particular, drain plugs, without hot oil or other liquid being drained contacting hands and/or arms, and (7) while maintaining adequate engagement with the objects when at adverse orientations.